NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship in Biology FY 2016

Begay Shanadeen C, Jamaica Plain MA

Investigators

Abstract

Postdoctoral Fellow: Shanadeen Begay Proposal Number: 1612313 This action funds an NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Biology for FY 2016, Broadening Participation of Groups Under-represented in Biology. The fellowship supports a research and training plan for the Fellow that will increase the participation of groups underrepresented in biology. The title of the research plan for this fellowship to Dr. Shanadeen Begay is "Enzyme Design Principles for Elucidating Enzyme Function." The host sponsoring scientists are all at Northeastern University (NU): Drs. Mary Jo Ondrechen, Lee Makowski, and Penny J. Beuning. The goal of this research is to understand the role of distal amino acids in the structure and function of enzymes. Understanding the functional roles of all amino acids in a protein structure, including distal amino acids about which little is currently known, is key to understanding protein structure and moving forward the new field of enzyme design. However, there does not exist a natural enzyme that can act as a catalyst for most synthetic reactions, and it remains a major challenge to develop the capability to design such enzymes. The Fellow is exploring the contribution of distal amino acids to: 1) the electrical potential in the active site; and 2) the dynamic motion, of the human enzyme phosphoglucose isomerase (PGI). The Fellow is also developing computational tools that will integrate x-ray solution scattering data with computed molecular dynamics (MD) trajectories to enhance the understanding of the role of dynamics in enzyme catalysis. The results will inform the biological community of the importance of distal residues in enzyme function and design, and help to develop the basic principles to enable enzyme design. The Fellow is engaged in several training activities in areas such as: 1) protein expression and purification techniques; 2) quantum mechanical molecular electronic structure calculations and protein electrostatics computational methods; and 3) x-ray solution scattering techniques for protein solution structure determination. The Fellow is increasing the participation of under-represented groups, specifically promoting the inclusion of Native Americans in the sciences, by participating in an NSF-sponsored future faculty development program administered by the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) entitled 'Lighting the Pathway to Faculty Careers for Natives in STEM.' The Fellow also serves as a role model and mentor to dozens of undergraduate STEM majors, and is helping promote careers in biology to minorities served by the Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (TCUP) institutions. Further benefits to society will result from the Fellow's outreach efforts to broaden the participation in biology of K-12 students at the North American Indian Center of Boston (NAICOB).